Prospective primary teachers’ perceptions about the use of mathematics homework

The benefit of homework (HW) has been the subject of ongoing debate among various stakeholders. Within this debate, and in relation to teacher development, prospective teachers’ views of HW have received limited attention. In this study, we survey primary pre-service teachers’ (‘PSTs’) views of HW use (n = 45 teaching grades 2–5; n = 39 teaching grades 6 and 7) in a single discipline (mathematics) at one large Australian university.

The literature suggests students in upper primary and secondary grades will benefit from the use of mathematics HW. Results of the study, in contrast, suggest our PSTs teaching early primary grades planned to give proportionally (but not significantly) more mathematics HW than those teaching later grades. Reasons for this disparity are discussed. We argue there is a need in teacher development to equip PSTs with a better understanding of how classroom and home-based learning work together in the development of mathematical understanding.     

对排球技术评定考试方法的研究

排球技术评定考试方法的改革，主要是针对减少技术评定的主观性研究。在查阅了大量相关的文献资料后，制定了技术考试评定方法的细则，研究了扣分的幅，通过对新方法与传统方法的现场和录像评分的数据统计分析，得出新方法比传统方法对成绩评定，更为例题。     

科技评估DIIS方法

科技评估在科技管理中发挥着重要的作用,从智库角度而言,其不仅是智库研究的重要任务,而且是智库研究质量的重要保障。然而,现有科技评估方法通常作用于评估问题的局部,缺少从辩证法及系统论角度对科技评估全过程方法体系的思考与认知。为此,文章将潘教峰提出的解决智库研究一般问题的DIIS理论方法运用于科技评估,据此提出科技评估DIIS方法,进而从DIIS视角出发将科技评估在科技决策咨询中的作用界定为六大功能:证据形成功能、衡量比较功能、诊断分析功能、前瞻预测功能、价值导向与判断功能和质量控制功能。最后以机构评估、项目评估、政策评估和研究质量评估为例,分析科技评估DIIS方法的实践应用,以期为我国科技评估实践提供一种方法指引与支撑。     

水上交通加权安全评价中权重向量的异常分析

为提高指标权重在水上交通安全评价中的准确性,提出一种基于DBSCAN算法的权重向量异常分析方法.该方法选取加权评价法为研究对象,以DBSCAN算法为检测方法,对水上交通加权安全评价中的权重向量进行异常分析.实例表明,在130组数据中,异常权重向量共3组.从数据分布情况看,异常向量与正常向量有比较明显的差异,说明此方法能有效识别异常向量,是可行的.该方法对权重向量集进行分析后,可防止异常权重向量的干扰,提高评价结果的质量.     

对我国32所地方高校院系目标考核文本的分析

运用内容分析法,以32所地方高校院系目标考核文件为调查对象,从考核时间、组织部门、考核目的、考核原则、考核范围、考核指标、考核程序、考核结果、结果使用等维度进行统计分析,调查结果发现,我国高校目标考核成效明显,但也存在目标考核工作滞后、考核指标层次不清、考核结果等次人为设置比例等问题,高校要重视发挥目标考核的作用,理清和处理好考核指标之间以及目标设定与目标考核、动态考核与终期考核、相对比较与绝对比较之间的关系。     

The “None of the Above” Option in Multiple-Choice Testing: An Experimental Study

The authors assessed the effects of using “none of the above” as an option in a 40-item, general-knowledge multiple-choice test administered to undergraduate students. Examinees who selected “none of the above” were given an incentive to write the correct answer to the question posed. Using “none of the above” as the keyed option made items much more difficult (d = ?1.11). Furthermore, 45% of the time that examinees correctly selected “none of the above,” they wrote either a wrong answer (19%) or no answer (26%), and rescoring items to deny credit in these cases caused item discrimination to fall (d = ?0.35). Thus, when “none of the above” is the keyed option, credit earned by examinees with knowledge deficiencies can make items appear to have more discriminatory power than is actually the case. The authors recommend that “none of the above” should not be used as an option in multiple-choice items.     

Discourse measures for Basque summary grading

In the context of Learning Technologies, the need to be able to assess the learning and domain comprehension in open-ended learner responses has been present in artificial intelligence and education since its beginnings. The advantage of using summaries is that they allow teachers to diagnose comprehension and the amount of information remembered from text in the learning process. This study addresses the issue of automatically obtaining overall discourse scores from surface discourse measures for Basque language. Global measures have been studied for cohesion, adequacy and use of language. The approach taken was to estimate the presence of the automatically gathered surface discourse measures in expert grading decisions in cohesion, adequacy and use of language. As a consequence, three grading decision-making regression models were obtained to estimate overall grades from text written in Basque. Next, the obtained regression models were tested in corpus-containing summaries written by learners with different degrees of summarisation maturity. The results show that the obtained grading frameworks significantly reflect human decisions and are able to discriminate summarisation maturity differences.     

Tackle and ruck technique proficiency within academy and senior club rugby union

ABSTRACT

This study examined the validity of a tool that assesses tackle and ruck technique in training and established reference data for tackle, ball-carry and ruck technique at different levels of play in rugby union. One hundred and thirty-one amateur rugby union players; 37 senior, 51 first-grade academy and 43 second-grade academy players, participated in a two-on-two contact drill. The drill was filmed and the players’ tackle, ball-carry and ruck technique were assessed using standardized technical criteria. Senior level players scored significantly higher in all three assessments; tackle technique senior vs academy 1^st (p < 0.01, effect size (ES) = 0.7, moderate), senior vs academy 2^nd (p < 0.01, ES = 0.7, moderate); ball-carry technique senior vs academy 1^st (p < 0.01, ES = 0.6, moderate), senior vs academy 2^nd (p < 0.01, ES = 0.8, moderate); ruck technique senior vs academy 1^st (p < 0.01, ES = 0.7, moderate), senior vs academy 2^nd (p < 0.01, ES = 0.4, small). These findings emphasize the importance of developing contact technique to allow players to progress to higher levels, and provide validity to an assessment tool which can facilitate this process.     

技术评价偏差及其控制研究

本文讨论技术评价偏差产生的根源、偏差的类型及如何对偏差进行控制的问题。评价偏差的根源主要是来自于评价主体、评价客体及外界因素,偏差类型则根据偏差产生的不同时点分成评价前偏差和评价过程偏差两类。本文提出的评价偏差的控制方法主要针对评价主体。     

“Students Get What Flows Downward”: District Leaders’ Rationalizations of the Standardized Testing of Children

What do students stand to gain from high-stakes, standardized testing? We consider answers to this question from the perspective of urban district leaders tasked with designing and overseeing the implementation of standardized testing policies. Results revealed variation in leaders’ framing of and rationale for standardized testing with respect to benefits for students and whether/why students should strive for high test scores. Implications for both approaches to standardized testing and broader improvement initiatives are discussed.